Donnelly's Dilemma
by randomitegirl
Summary: The Last thing Agent Donnelly wants to do is work with the Man in the Suit. But when his number comes up and his daughter is kidnapped, he finds he has no other option. Set during Prisoner's Dilemma but quickly deviates from that course.
1. Chapter 1

Head note: I had this type of idea forming in my head before prisoner's Dilemma. I am one of those people who try to theorize about future episodes based on the title and who is in it. As you can see it starts out as Prisoner's Dilemma, but it quickly deviates from that course.

Chapter One

Donnelly watched as Carter interrogated Clark, Watts, Holt, and finally Warren. Each one of them had a convincing story, and all of them seemed to check out. It didn't help that they each had three days to prepare their stories. Ample time to make them convincing enough. But Donnelly knew that eventually one of the stories would fall apart and the lie would be revealed. Odds were, the lie would belong to The Man in the Suit.

He looked at the man claiming to be John Warren. He appeared relaxed at first glance, but looking at him again he noticed that beneath his relaxed façade, his body was wound up as tight as a bowstring. Ready to move at an instant's notice should the situation demand it. Next he looked at the man claiming to be Devin Clark. He looked like a man trying to remain calm but he seemed really agitated. Then he looked at the man claiming to be Vincent Holt. The man reeked of violence. Every time Carter had walked into the interrogation room his jaw tightened and his fists clenched. Certainly a sociopath who needed to be taken down, but that didn't mean he was the man they were looking for.

Carter had broken Watts hours ago, getting him to reveal Brian Kelly as his real name. It seemed there was more than one liar they were holding. He sighed and rubbed his eyes. It had already been a long couple of days. The rest off the investigation was going to be even longer and mind stressing.

He looked at Carter. If he had been asked three days ago if he suspected Carter of helping the Man in the Suit, he would have laughed at the absurdity of the thought. But after the fingerprints went missing, he knew something was up. After all the inconclusive DNA might be because he had gotten the wrong guys, but missing fingerprints could not be explained away. He still wasn't sure, and he hoped he was jumping to the wrong conclusion, but he continued to watch as she interrogated them one by one. _Don't make me arrest you, Carter_. He thought to himself.

John was in his cell waiting to be called in for interrogation again. He knew Donnelly would not give up. He had spent ten months looking for the man in the suit and he would not allow him to slip through his grasp. But he couldn't help but respect him for it. Suddenly he heard a vibration. He quickly looked around before answering the phone.

"Finch?" He responded quietly.

"Mr. Reese a new number just came in." Finch said.

"I don't know why you are telling me this, Harold," he stated, "I'm not exactly in the best position to do anything."

"In this case you are the one who can do the most," Finch responded. "Our number is our mutual friend, Nicholas Donnelly."

John considered this information a bit before speaking again.

"Well, this should be fun."

"What's your plan, Mr. Reese?"

"I'll think of something." He said before hanging up.

He needed to warn him. That much was certain. But he couldn't just walk up to him. And Carter handled all the interrogations. Maybe if he said something interesting enough he would come and talk to him. But only one thing would interest him enough.

John was called into the interrogation room again. He sat across from Carter who was visibly worried.

"So, Mr. Warren," she began. But John interrupted before she could ask anything.

"Look I'm just going to come right out and say it. Cause if I don't, you're just going to break me anyway." He paused before continuing. "I'm the Man in the Suit."

Carter's eyes widened in surprise and her mouth opened, but before she could say anything, Donnelly burst through the door. Just as John suspected he would.

"Mr. Warren, you have the right to remain silent. Anything you say can and will be used against you. You there," He said pointing to one of the agents. "Take him away. I'll join you shortly."

As he passed a desk he stole a paperclip protruding from underneath papers and was led down a hall and to room he hadn't seen before. He could tell it was going to take while so he turned to the agent who had accompanied him.

"Have you ever met a CIA agent before?" he asked

"I am under orders not to speak to you." The agent said curtly.

"That's a shame," he replied. He fiddled with the paperclip trying to pick at the lock on his handcuffs. If this was going to work he had to talk to Donnelly alone

"Did you know that most law enforcement officers make the same mistakes as everybody else?" John asked.

"I don't care." The agent said hotly.

"Well, you should care." John said "Because you just made mistake number one."

With that he dropped the handcuffs and knocked the agent to the ground.

"Just a tip," He said to the unconscious guard. "Next time you have to transport a prisoner make sure he doesn't steal anything like a paperclip or anything else that can be used to pick locks." John knelt down to make sure he was alive. Once he was certain, he took the handcuffs that were on him and put them on the agent. The door opened and Donnelly stopped in his tracks. Blood drained from his face as he realized what John had done.

"Hello Nick," John said calmly. "Sorry about the mess, but I had to talk to you alone."

"What is this? How do you know my name?" Donnelly demanded.

"Look Nick, I didn't bring you down here to talk about me. The fact is, you're in danger."

"What are you talking about?" He demanded.

"Someone wants to kill you." He stated as matter-of-factly as he could. "Unless, you are the one trying to kill someone. Are you trying to kill someone?" John asked.

"What no! Why would I kill anyone?"

"Well if you're not trying to kill someone, then someone wants you dead."

"I don't believe this," Donnelly sighed. "The only reason you confessed was so you could threaten me?" He made his way for the door. John grabbed his arm stopping him.

"All I ask from you is to give me 48 hours to assess the threat and take care of it."

Donnelly scoffed and shook himself free from John's grip.

"Is that your hidden agenda?" He asked. "Let you go and give you two days to fall back off the grid so that I never catch another glimpse of you? I don't think so." He scowled at John for a moment. Then John watched as Donnelly walked out of the room.

e...Some of you might be worried about how Donnelly never said "You have the right to an attourney...etc." I just didn't find it necesarry to quote the entire miranda rights.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter Two

Donnelly joined Carter sitting at a table.

"So, did you get anything?" Carter asked.

"Well, we have the right guy," He said. "In the time it took me to get down there, he had already gotten out of his handcuffs and took out the agent I sent down with him."

He didn't want to bring up The Man in the Suit's warning. They had been so cryptic that for a moment he had actually believed him. Even now he could almost feel a prickle on the back of his neck as if he was being watched. He shook himself. _Nothing will happen_, he said to himself. _He was just saying those things to frighten me_. Still whether the Man in the Suit was lying or not, it wouldn't hurt to take extra precautions.

"So, I guess we have to release the others." Carter said bringing him back to the present.

"No," He said. "When you broke Kelly, I received an anonymous Email showing that he had an off shore bank account worth at least 3 million dollars. That's a lot of money for someone of his profession. And I don't like Holt. The man reeks of violence. If these men were all working together it was probably for a job."

"So you think they are Mercenaries or something?" she asked.

"Man, it is so weird to hear someone else say it." He said. He was glad to be working with Carter. She was a very intelligent, very capable detective. She would make a strong addition to the FBI. That is if she wasn't working with the Man in the Suit. "I suspected Holt right from the start. The man is a sociopath. I could tell that from looking at him."

"So, Mr. Warren, Is he still down there?" She asked.

"Yes why?"

I want to ask who he's working for and what he is doing."

"I tried that," he lied, still not wanting to bring up his warning. "He just rambled on about how he wouldn't betray his boss."

"I want to try anyway," She said.

Donnelly gave his consent and watched as she left. Suddenly his cell phone started ringing. The number on the caller ID wasn't familiar but something told him to answer it.

"Hello," He said. His heart froze as the person on the other line responded.

"Daddy! Daddy, help me!"

"Julie! Julie, what is going on? Where are you!?" He asked his 7 year old daughter.

"Daddy, Help me! I'm scared!" she cried. In an instant Julie's sweet voice was replaced by a mature female voice.

"Hear that daddy," she said taunting him. "Julie is scared." He could still hear Julie crying for him.

"Who are you?" he demanded. "What have you done with her?"

"Nothing. Yet." She continued. "But if you don't deliver me what I want, I will make it impossible for you to even recognize her."

the last thing he wanted was to be a puppet for whatever criminal activity she no doubt had planned. But as he thought about his daughter Julie, he realized he would do anything to ensure her safety.

"Alright what do you want?" He asked.

"No cops," she said. "And I know you are FBI so don't make any slips of the tongue to any Co-workers. Wouldn't want any SWAT teams endangering your daughter would we?" He could almost hear the cruel smile spreading across her face.

"What do you want?" he demanded again.

"I will let you know when I call again. Oh and say hi to John for me." She said before hanging up.

Immediately he looked at the number and went to his computer. He was about to trace the number when he remembered the rules she had given him. _No cops. No FBI friends._

He swore inwardly when he realized that there was nothing he could do to help his daughter. He was about to give up when a thought struck him. The Man in the Suit was not a cop.

But he immediately dismissed the thought for pure absurdity. He was not about to entrust his daughter to the hands of a man that had been his enemy for the better part of a year. Thinking about the Man in the Suit brought up another issue. He had known that something like this would happen. He had known that he was in danger. He had made a point of telling him so. If he had known about the danger encompassing him, why hadn't he warned him about his daughter? Why had he failed to mention that his daughter was being kidnapped? All the questions were piling up and the answers were not coming.

He reviewed the situation. His daughter was being held captive somewhere and he was unable to do anything. Her only hope seemed to be the one man he couldn't trust. He didn't like it, but it was his only option.

"Did you have to knock him out, John?" Carter asked indicating the guard. John couldn't help but smiling his michievious smile before answering her question.

"I had to talk to Donnelly alone, and I knew he would not voluntarily agree to that. So I had to confess so that he would come and talk to me."

"You do realize he is trying to arrest you?" she asked. "What was so important that you had to talk to Donnelly in person?"

"He is in danger," he said simply. There was a still silence before Carter broke it.

"Why?" she asked.

"I don't know. We never know why." He said. "But what I do know is he is in danger. Just like you were in danger and we helped you."

Before either of them could say another word Donnelly burst through the door.

"Carter will you please leave me and Mr. Warren?" he asked.

"What's going on?" She asked.

"Nothing! Just leave us alone," He practically shouted. But the emotion in his eyes wasn't anger, but desperation. John signaled slightly that everything would be ok and she left.

"Where is she?" Donnelly demanded without skipping a beat. "Where is my daughter?"

"I don't know," John replied honestly. "I didn't even know you had a daughter."

"I just got a call on my phone. She was kidnapped." He raved.

"Nick, listen to me," he said. "I know how you're feeling. Your daughter is kidnapped and you're not certain if you can trust me to get her back. Now, I can get your daughter back, Nicholas, but you have to calm down and you have to trust me." Donnelly eyed him suspiciously for a moment and nodded begrudgingly. _But who can blame him?_ He thought. "What did the kidnapper sound like?" he asked.

"It was a woman."

"Okay, did she say anything?" He asked.

"No cops, no FBI friends." He said.

"Nothing else?" he said. "No ransom demands or anything?"

"No." he said. But then he seemed to remember something. "I think she knew you."

John was confused.

"What do you mean?

"She said to 'Say hello to john for me.'"

"Really?" he said. "Well that narrows down my list of suspects." He said standing up.

"Where are you going?" Donnelly demanded.

"To get your daughter." He answered. "One thing I hate more than anything are people who mess with kids in order to accomplish their agenda." He didn't bother to hide his rage. It might even work to his advantage to have Donnelly see him angry in behalf of his daughter.

"How do I know you're not working with her?" He asked grabbing his arm.

"Look, Nick, I know you have no reason to trust me. For all you know I am a Special Forces wacko, either working for china or selling my services to the highest bidder."

"How did you-?" He started to ask. But John continued, interrupting his question.

"But you need to understand, Nick that we've got a lot more in common than you realize. For example we make ourselves a lot of enemies by nature of our jobs. HR, for example, hates both our guts because we cut in on their business."

"How does that prove that you are not with the abductor?" Donnelly asked.

"Because my partner is a man. And the abductor was a woman"

Finally Donnelly seemed to be convinced. Even though some doubt tugged at his eyes he seemed to understand that John was his only hope of  
getting his daughter back.

"What do you need?" He asked.

"You need to get me out of here and not chase me for at least 48 hours."

"Is that when she will be back?" Donnelly asked.

"Maybe, but in any case I will be working to get her back. No matter what the cost."

"You have 48 hours," Donnelly stated. "Please, get her back."

John looked him straight in the eye.

"You have my word."


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter Three:

Finch sat in the library as Bear laid on his bed morosely. He wondered what had befallen his friend since he heard his confession to Agent Donnelly. Months of torture wouldn't have caused him to reveal his identity. But a person in danger did. And now he wondered if he would ever see John again.

Suddenly the gate opened and Bear jumped up off his bed and knocked over John's six-foot-two frame.

"Mr. Reese," he sighed in relief. "Have you been released?"

"Momentarily," John said. "I told Donnelly he was in danger, took a little convincing, but he agreed to give us 48 hours to hunt down the people who kidnapped his daughter."

"Well that is a step in the right direction." Harold replied. "It appears that Agent Donnelly has a whole other life than the one chasing the man in the suit. Born and raised in Roanoke, Virginia, he went to Northwestern University where he studied law. He soon after entered the FBI and has had several promotions over the course of his career. While attending Northwestern University, he fell in love with Sarah Kingston and after a year of courting they were married. They have two children: Bradley, ten and Julie, seven." He placed the pictures on the glass wall.

"She is the one kidnapped." John said.

"Could it be our friends in HR?" Harold asked.

"I don't think so," John replied. "He said the kidnapper was a woman."

"We'll have to start from scratch I guess." Finch said.

"Not necessarily from scratch," John corrected him. "We have one clue. The kidnapper knew me. It's short list of people who know me. And even fewer who know I am alive."

"Well, there's Agent Snow. He disappeared last year. He could have used his disappearance to kidnap Julie."

"But the kidnapper-!"

"Was a woman I know," he said. "But the woman could have enlisted Agent Snow. Got him to do the actual kidnapping."

John was suddenly stood up and his eyes opened wide. He wasn't a man who was frightened easily so Harold couldn't help but ask him what was wrong.

"A few months ago," he started. "Carter said she followed Mark. He told her that 'she' was planning something. I can only think of one woman who would terrify him that much. My old friend from the CIA, Kara Stanton. I always thought she was dead but she must have survived. And now she wants revenge."

"How would kidnapping a seven-year-old girl get revenge on the government?" Finch asked.

"Because of me," John explained. "She must have known Donnelly was investigating me. So she kidnapped his daughter and the next time she calls, I bet she'll demand me as a ransom."

"Then we have to find her and stop her." Harold said.

John took out his new cell phone that he had bought on the way over.

"I am going to call Carter. See if she remembers where Snow was when she talked to him. It will give us a place to start."

Carter sat at the table watching as Donnelly paced back and forth.

"Is everything okay?" she asked even though she could tell something was gnawing at his brain.

"Everything is fine," He said shortly.

"Look, Donnelly, I want to help you but you have to tell me what's wrong."

Donnelly sighed. "I can't." He said. He wouldn't tell her about his dilemma. He couldn't. He sat down in desperation.

Carter gave an exasperated sigh. Of the many people she had helped since she started working with John, Donnelly was probably the least cooperative. It didn't surprise her at all that he was in danger. After all, he was insistent on going it alone. He had made it clear that he didn't trust anyone anymore. And if someone wanted to take advantage of that, no one would be around to stop it. Donnelly would find himself alone.

But Carter was determined not to leave him alone. Not when she knew he was in danger. But then why was he pacing absent-mindedly? He surely had a lot on his mind. But she doubted that it was because he had been threatened. Agent Donnelly was not the type of person who took threats seriously. Even if there was something behind those threats, he wouldn't give them a moment's notice. So then what had his mind so occupied? Then it hit her.

"Donnelly," she began. "Is everything ok with your family?"

Donnelly looked at her suspiciously.

"Do you always butt into people's family affairs, Carter?" he asked.

Before she could say anything else her phone rang and she took a look at it.

"I gotta take this," she said. She stood up and walked out of earshot. "Finch?"

"No it's me." John said. That was unexpected. Wasn't he down in the holding cell?

"John!" She said looking around making sure Donnelly didn't hear her. "How did you get a cell phone? How did you even get out?"

"Long story," he answered. "I need your help on a case. Donnelly's daughter was kidnapped."

"Yeah, I figured something happened with his family," She replied. "What do you guys have?"

"A suspect," he said. "Do you remember talking to Snow a few months back?"

"Yeah, getting shot at isn't easy to forget," she said. "What about him?"

"Where did you go? We need that location." He said.

"I don't remember the exact address but I could get you there."

Donnelly sat numbly as Carter excused herself. He didn't know what had caused her to ask about his family but he feared that it was because he wasn't doing a very good job at hiding his feelings. He had been battling with himself over letting The Man in the Suit go. One part of him said that he should never have let him go, saying he probably wasn't going to see him again. Another part of him argued that "John" was his only chance and hope of getting his daughter back. Another part still wondered if the Man in the Suit even planned on keeping his promise.

That one he could shoot down easily. He had seen the look in his eye when he promised to bring back his daughter. The look no doubt belonged to a killer, but something behind them told him that the person he hurt would be the one who kidnapped his daughter. Donnelly was shocked at the pleasure he got picturing the kidnapper on his knees, trembling under the wrath of the Man in the Suit. _Her knees, actually_, he thought as he remembered the woman's voice.

His thoughts were interrupted by his phone ringing. This time he recognized the number as he answered the phone.

"That was a close shave for you wasn't it, _Agent_ Donnelly," she said. "If that detective had pushed any harder… I'm not sure Julie would still be alive."

"What do you want?" he asked ignoring the sick feeling in his stomach. He didn't want to know how she knew about Detective Carter's prodding.

"I hinted at it earlier but if you really need me to spell it out for you I will. I want John." She said.

"What?" he asked. This couldn't be happening. The one person she wanted was already gone. So he couldn't just hand him over.

"I believe you call him 'the Man in the Suit'" she said.

"I can't." He said. He wasn't about to tell her why.

"Go to Central Park at midnight," she began ignoring his objections. "We will trade prisoners there."

Donnelly did not like his daughter being referred to as a prisoner but he was forced to agree to the terms. He stood there for the better part of ten minutes gathering his thoughts. It was Carter who again brought him back to the present. He looked at the clock. Five. _Great_, he thought, _I have seven hours to locate the Man in the Suit. _ He gave the thought a dry laugh. It had taken him ten months to catch a glimpse of the Man in the Suit. It did not seem likely that he would find him again by midnight. He turned to Carter.

"I just got a call that the Man in the Suit escaped," he lied, although it really wasn't a lie. "I need your help to catch him again. We have to locate the Man in the Suit as soon as possible."

"Yeah, I would love to help you right now, but Taylor's school just called and he must have gotten sick. I just have to go pick him up, take him home, and I'll be back as soon as possible."

Donnelly stood staring at Carter. He wanted to scream at her,_ my daughter is in the hands of a sociopath right now!_ _Do you not understand that the Man in the Suit is the only way to get her back?!_

But obviously that was out of the question. As it was, all he could do was nod his consent, despite his predicament.

Suddenly, it hit him that Carter's phone call was a little convenient in calling her away. Almost as if she didn't want to be overheard. He thought about the suspicion he had of her over the past few days and realized he could either confirm those suspicions or put them to rest if he followed her. If she was going to pick up her son, than he would put his suspicions to rest for the time being. And if she went to meet the Man in the Suit, he would know. He went to his car and put it in drive and followed Carter's tail lights.


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter Four

John sat in Carter's patrol car as she drove him to where she had seen Agent Snow.

"This is it," she said watching as he prepared his gun. "Do you need me to stay and help?"

"No, I can take it from here," he said thanking her. "You need to get back and keep an eye on Donnelly."

"Yeah, about that," she began, "Donnelly knows you've escaped. He's going to be very determined to get you back."

"Well then, we better get this job done as quickly as possible," he said being careful not to reveal anything. He didn't want to give Donnelly any reason not to trust him. He already made up enough reasons in his head. He opened the door and walked toward the building.

XxXx

Donnelly sat in his car watching as Carter pulled over in front of some abandoned building. The windows were dark and it gave off an eerie first impression. _Strange place to be picking up Taylor_, he thought. The passenger door opened and someone got out. Donnelly's breath caught in his throat as he recognized the Man in the Suit walking up to the building. Yes he had truly suspected her, but now that he knew for sure, it felt like a slap in the face. Had all that time been a lie? Just a way for the Man in the Suit to stay a step ahead of him? What was the lie and what was the truth? Had she told him any truth?

Another thing, had she been working with HR as well? He remembered how she had gotten herself involved in that investigation. Had she been their eyes and ears as well? Then a horrifying thought struck him. Had the Man in the Suit told Carter that he had let him go? If he did then he would be in a tough situation. She would be able to prove that he was just as guilty for aiding and abetting as she was.

In any case, he would have to deal with Carter later. He waited for Carter to drive away before getting out of his car and following the Man in the Suit into the building.

XxXx

John felt his senses expand as he began relying on his instincts to give him all his warnings. There was one thought coursing through his mind. _Find Kara and find the girl_. Right now that was all that mattered. Hearing a noise behind him, he turned and slammed the perpetrator against the wall only to find Donnelly. He quickly released him.

"What are you doing here, Nicholas?" he asked.

"I might ask you the same question." Donnelly said rubbing his throat.

"I told you, Nicholas, I am going to find your daughter, but you have to trust me."

"The kidnapper called-" He began when John interrupted him again.

"Let me guess, she wanted me for the ransom demand." He could tell by how Donnelly widened his eyes that his suspicion had been confirmed.

"Yes, she wanted to, 'exchange prisoners at midnight.'" He said.

"Plenty of time then," John said.

"What do you mean?" Donnelly asked suspiciously.

"Well, I've always been a believer in the direct approach. I'll find her and get her to tell me where your daughter is"

"Are you crazy?" Donnelly objected. "You'll get my daughter killed."

"You need to understand Nick, that I have a lot of experience in this area." He reminded him. "I have been doing this for longer than you have been chasing me. So I need you to trust me. I assume you have a gun?"

"Of course I have a gun," Donnelly replied rather testily.

"Good. Because you're going to need it." John said.

"This is insane," Donnelly repeated. "You'll get us killed."

"And the longer we stay here debating about it, Nicholas, the more likely it is that will happen." John said hoping to get his point across. Finally, he nodded reluctantly and John sighed inwardly.

"So what's your plan?" Donnelly asked.

"I need you to stay here and cover me," John said. He knew Donnelly was just worried about his daughter, but John didn't need him in the way. He would be walking back with Donnelly's daughter in less than an hour anyway if things went right. Donnelly seemed disappointed to be staying behind, but nodded. _Good_, he thought, _'Cause I don't need you getting yourself killed while I'm trying to help your daughter._

With that he left Donnelly and went to find Kara.

XxXx

Donnelly watched as the Man in the Suit went ahead. Slowly he pulled out his own gun, doing as the Man in the Suit had told him. _This is insane_, he told himself. But he knew this was his only option. Well maybe he could run after him and put him back in cuffs. The Man in the Suit seemed determined to protect him so he wouldn't kill him. He could get him and trade him for his daughter at midnight just like the kidnapper wanted. But then he remembered the way the Man in the Suit had grabbed him. And that was when he hadn't known he was there. The Man in the Suit could easily disable him and go through with his mission. Finally Donnelly recognized that there really was nothing else he could do. His thoughts were soon interrupted by a gun's safety being released and a voice speaking to him.

"Drop your gun and slide it over to me," it said.

Cursing himself for not being vigilant enough he did as he was told, lifting his hands in surrender. He heard the man pick up the gun and he stole a glance at him. It was Agent Snow. The man that had been sent to find the Man in the Suit.

He watched as Snow put his gun in his back pocket. Snow grabbed the back of his collar and steered him toward his fate.

XxXx

Kara Stanton stood watching the computer monitor that displayed Donnelly's daughter. The brat had stopped screaming for her father hours ago, thankfully. If it had gone on any longer she might have just shot the girl just to get her to shut up. The girl's screaming had been replaced by sniffles and tears streaming down her cheeks, but that was more tolerable than the screaming.

She heard a commotion in the doorway and turn to see Mark shove Agent Donnelly to his knees in front of her, holding a gun to the back of his head. She smiled.

"You're a bit early for our appointment, aren't you Agent Donnelly?"

"I'm here for my daughter," he said simply.

"Well, you managed to get here without breaking any of the rules," she said. "So where is John?" Donnelly's face paled imperceptibly, but Kara saw it and her smile widened. "Or did you think you could just break in here, guns blazing, and you would be able to get your daughter out of here in one piece?"

Before he could answer her, she felt a hand clamp over her throat and the next thing she knew, she was pinned against the wall, staring into John's lethal eyes.

John followed the hall trying to find where Kara might be hiding. It took a few minutes but he finally found her. She was talking down to someone but that didn't matter. Nothing mattered now. Rage coursing through him, he stormed into the room, grabbed her throat and slammed her against the wall, his eyes blazing with fury.

"Where is she, Kara?" he demanded in his lethally soft voice. "Where is the girl?"

There may have been a moment when Kara had fear in her eyes, but it had vanished in an instant as she recognized him.

"Hello, John," she said mockingly. "I wasn't expecting you this early."

"I'm not here to play games Kara," He said. "Tell me where the girl is."

"Or what?" she asked. "Do you expect me to believe that a boy scout would have the guts to kill me?"

"Boy Scout or not, you know I can do it," He responded. Then he added, "You made me that way. Now, where. Is. She?" He asked through clenched teeth tightening his grip on her throat.

"Do you really want to do that?" she asked as a safety clicked.

He turned around expecting to see a gun to his head. Instead he saw Donnelly kneeling on the floor, Mark Snow gripping the back of his collar the gun in his hand buried into the back of Donnelly's head. Donnelly was trying to return a defiant gaze, but John could tell by the way he was biting his lip that Donnelly was afraid. John glared at Kara who was showing him her cell phone.

"His daughter is hooked up to a bomb vest," she explained. "I have her on speed dial, and of course, you see Agent Donnelly over there in his poor predicament. Do things my way, you will save both of them. Do things your way, and you'll be lucky if you save one of them. I know you would never want to let a child die. Especially in such a painful way. And I know you don't care about Donnelly, but do you really want to make a little girl grow up without her father?"

John glared at Kara for several intense moments. He finally realized that he would never be able to save both Donnelly and his daughter. It took all the strength he had, but he let go of Kara's throat resisting the temptation to throw her.

"See?" Kara said not even bothering to rub her throat. "I knew you could be reasonable."

"What do you want Kara?" He asked.

"I need you to run a few errands for me," she said obviously evading his question. "If you do everything I tell you, the girl will remain intact."

"Mark will be staying here to take care of Donnelly," She explained. "If he gets a call on the phone regarding any resistance…" she trailed off trusting that he understood what would happen. And he did. If anything went wrong and Kara contacted Snow, John would be left to explain to a seven-year-old girl why she would never see her father again. John nodded solemnly. One thing he didn't want was to go forward with Kara's secret mission and then have it hurt people. Since he had no way of knowing what her plan was, he had to stop her without giving himself away. Without a word, he followed Kara into the hallway.

End note: It may take a few days for me to post the next chapter. I have most of this figured out, just a few more things that I have to come up with for chapter five. I will post it as soon as possible.


	5. Chapter 5

Head note: It took a few days but here it is! Enjoy! Many thanks to LindaO for her many suggestions. It was a great help.

Chapter Five

Donnelly watched as the Man in the Suit and the kidnapper walked out of the room. He wasn't sure what to think about what he had witnessed. Part of him had been impressed at how John had handled the kidnapper. But on the other hand, the hushed animosity in his voice, and the way he had forced her against the wall had scared him to death. There were clearly hard feelings between the two rogue agents. But at the same time they were still criminals who would both later be locked up after this whole mess was sorted out.

"I bet you're tired of sitting on the floor," Snow commented, breaking Donnelly's concentration. He drew a chair into the middle of the floor and pointed his gun at him telling him to sit in the chair. Donnelly reluctantly complied and allowed Snow to tie up his hands behind his back. As humiliating as it was, he felt it was best not to anger the CIA agent.

"So, you still plan on arresting John after all this is over?" Snow asked him.

Donnelly refused to answer, which drew a laugh from Snow.

"You're not much of a talker, are you?" He asked.

"I feel no inclination to talk to someone who is holding me against my will," Donnelly answered

"Hey!" Snow suddenly shouted. "Do you think I'm here because I want to be? I have about a pound of explosives strapped to me! If I don't do exactly what she tell me, I'm dead!"

It was a few minutes before Donnelly spoke again saying, "honestly, I wouldn't put it past you to do this if she wasn't holding you on a string. Plus you are currently holding a gun to me. So forgive me for not generating any sympathy for you."

The room fell into silence as Snow turned away from him, scoffing. Neither one of them wanted to talk any more, but that was fine with Donnelly.

XxXxXx

John followed Kara as she led him out the door. He tried desperately to think of a plan to disable or distract Kara. Suddenly Finch's voice came through the earpiece. He slowed just enough so that there was distance between him and Kara.

"Finch," he whispered softly. "I assume you heard everything. Is there anything you can do?"

"Working on it, Mr. Reese" he answered. John was used to his partner coming up with solutions out of thin air, but he couldn't help but wonder if there would be one this time.

Kara turned to him. "Give me you phone." She ordered.

"Why?" John asked hesitating.

"There will be a moment where we will have to split up, and I will want to keep an eye on you," She said extending her hand. "Just to make sure you don't do anything stupid."

After hesitating for a moment he took his phone out of his pocket minimizing the screen so that she wouldn't realize that he was on the phone. She took it and took out her own phone. After a few minutes she gave him his phone back and smiled her unsympathetic smile.

"Now if you do anything stupid, I will know immediately and Snow will get a call from me. And I don't think you want me to do that." She said in false sympathy.

John threw her a scathing look and her smile widened before turning and continuing down the hallway.

"Do you know what she did to my phone," he asked Finch.

"It appears that she installed some sort of GPS locator into your phone and based on what she said, I'm guessing that she hooked it up to her phone so that she can track you when you are separated." He sounded confused. "She doesn't strike me as a woman who would be good at building any apps or trackers like that."

"So she's working for someone." John realized.

"That would be my guess." Finch confirmed.

"So how are we going get out of this one?" he whispered.

"Mr. Reese, I think I have a way to solve this problem," Finch said suddenly. "If I can cloak your phone at the same time that I can produce a false signal cloning your phone, I can control the signal and have it go where Stanton wants you to go. It would look like you were doing what she wanted you to no matter what you were really doing." After a few minutes he heard Finch's triumphant "yes." And then he spoke to John again, "Okay whenever she leaves you alone you can go back and get Agent Donnelly. The signal will go on without giving away your intentions."

XxXxXx

Kara Stanton took out a CD that her boss had built. It looked like a normal, regular CD, but she knew that it was much more complex than that. She had asked her boss what it was, but he had refused to answer her. There had been so many times that she had been tempted to shoot him. The only thing that had stopped her was the information he had. If he had not proven that he knew who was ultimately responsible for sending her and John to Ordos, she would have shot him when she was first able to move. After he built the CD, he told her about a computer in the building across the street that could use some "updates" as he had called it. She was down to the last step in her boss's plan. All she had to do was upload whatever was on it, to a sophisticated computer one that could transfer data to several different computers at once. She turned to John.

"This is a CD that I want to install in the building across the street, top floor. I need you to break in, find a computer to put this in. after that I will radio in on this," she gave him an earpiece, "tell you what needs to be done step by step."

"What is it?" was John's obligatory question. He was different from the no-questions-asked killer he used to be and she didn't like it.

"That's not really your concern is it John." She said giving him a smile that was far from kind. "Oh and just remember," she held up her phone. "I'll be watching you on this, so don't get any ideas or the girl and her father dies."

She watched him trying to discern his thoughts. She couldn't tell if he was nervous, or annoyed that she kept threatening the kid. But he finally nodded his understanding. She watched him go out of sight and then turned on the GPS app her boss had built and watched as he left the building and walked across the street.

XxXxXx

Finch's fingers flew across the keyboard as he sat at his computer manipulating the false signal to move where Stanton wanted John to go. He even managed to gain access the building's elevators so that when the time came, he could make it look like John was riding one. The deception he had managed to pull on Stanton had been carefully planned. He had to make sure the signal was moving at reasonable pace. Not too fast, not too slow. He doubted she would figure out she that she had been manipulated, but even if she did by the time she did it would already be too late for her to stop Mr. Reese.

But then something went wrong. An influx of data that had nothing to do with him was suddenly sent to Stanton's phone revealing John's true location. He tried to figure out what went wrong. He traced the source of the data to the CD Stanton had given Mr. Reese. realizing what happened, he quickly called his partner in a panic.

John left as Kara stayed behind. He wasn't sure if he should trust his instincts and just go along with Kara's plan, or if he should destroy it so that she could never do what she was planning. He wasn't sure if it would be safe for Donnelly or Julie if he abandoned Kara's plan. But Finch had assured him that he had taken care of the GPS locator on his phone, and when had Finch ever let him down. He turned down the hallway and walked down it a little and crushed the CD. Suddenly Finch's panicked voice spoke through his earpiece.

"John something just happened," he said. "There was a sudden flash of data sent to Stanton's phone, including your location."

"How?" John asked his panicked partner.

"My guess is that the CD was programmed to give off its location if it was ever destroyed."

Sure enough Kara's phone was given information that the CD had been destroyed somewhere in the building. At first she thought it was a mistake. According to the GPS on John's phone, he was in the building across the street, but the CD was saying it was destroyed a few hallways away from where she was now. Still confused she walked toward the location that her phone was giving her and saw no trace of John, but the CD was on the floor, shattered in pieces. She wasn't in the mood to wonder how he managed to be in two places at once. She had worked too long and too hard to do that. Anger began rising in her chest as she realized what John had done.

_You want to play John_, she thought darkly to herself, _very well I'll play with you. See how real this is for you_. She took her phone out and dialed Mark's number.

XxXxXx

Donnelly wasn't sure how much time had passed before the phone began to ring. He realized that John must have broken the deal somehow and Snow was about to get the message. He took a deep breath and told himself that whatever happened, he would not show his fear.

Snow answered the phone and a dark look came over his face. He gave a quick response and hung up. _This is it_, He told himself. _I am about to die and there is nothing I can do about it_. But he refused to show his fear as Snow turned back to face him. Snow began to train his gun on him. Donnelly took a deep breath that he was sure would be his last.

"Looks like you won't be chasing the Man in the Suit anymore after all," he said simply.

But before he could pull the trigger and hand clamped down on Snow's wrist and Donnelly was startled to John throw him against the wall. It didn't take long for Snow to recover and he quickly got into a fierce hand-to-hand combat with the Man in the Suit. Donnelly quickly realized that both were equally skilled and that it could end either way. Just as he thought this, John managed to throw Snow onto the ground, and before Snow could recover John thrust his elbow into Snow's forehead. Just enough to knock him out for a while without doing any long-term damage.

The fierce combat didn't seem to mirror John's demeanor as he walked over unruffled, and calm and untied Donnelly's hands from behind his back. "Now let's go find your daughter, Nick," he said in a businesslike way.

It was as if this kind of thing was an everyday occurrence. But despite the fact that John had saved his life he knew what he had to do. He grabbed John's arm.

"This doesn't change anything," he warned him. He expected to see anger spark in his eyes but they remained calm as he responded to him.

"I wouldn't expect it to," He said. "Oh and before I forget," he continued before kneeling over the unconscious form of Agent Snow. He took something out of his back pocket. Donnelly realized it was his gun and was surprised when John held it out to him. "I believe this is yours."

Donnelly reluctantly took it, not sure what to think, and put it in his holster. Then he followed John out the door.

XxXxXx

John walked down the hall. He tapped his earpiece and radioed in to Finch.

"I've got Donnelly and we're heading to find the girl," he summed up.

"I have accessed the video feeds from Stanton's computer," he began. "It appears Julie is on the second floor in room 206. You must hurry. Stanton knows that you didn't go through with her plan and she will probably try to take it out on Julie."

"Thanks for the tip, Harold," He responded.

"Who are you talking to?" Donnelly asked him.

"A friend." John answered.

"This friend of yours have a name?" Donnelly pressed.

"He prefers to remain anonymous," John said flatly hoping to make it clear that he would reveal no more. "We need to get up to the second floor. That's where your daughter is."

Donnelly nodded, clearly upset at not having an answer; but willing to put it aside at least for the time being.

They found the room and sure enough Julie was in there. She seemed frightened, but otherwise unharmed. Donnelly ran into the room and knelt at eye level with his daughter. John held back for a moment as Donnelly embraced his little girl. As soon as Donnelly let go of his daughter, John walked up to them and knelt down as well.

"Hello, Julie," he said gently, ignoring Donnelly's shocked look. "My name is John. I am going to get you out of here."

He went behind her and untied her hands from behind her back. As Donnelly bent down to pick up his daughter and carry her out, there was a noise at the door and the two men looked towards the door. Kara was standing in the doorway, pointing a gun at the both of them. She was smiling, but John could tell by the way she was smiling that she was not pleased that John had managed to trick her.

"Very clever to have gotten away from me John," she said, her tone was far from amused. "And how you managed to find the girl, I'll never know. But I can live with a mystery. You see, I don't exactly need you. The job can be done with just me and Mark. I just thought it would be fun to get us all together for one last mission, John. I guess you had other plans."

"Why did you kidnap my daughter?" Donnelly demanded.

"I wanted John's help, and you were investigating him." She explained in false sympathy. "But now that he has made it clear that he is not going to help me neither one of you is useful to me anymore."

"If you're going to kill us," Donnelly began, "Then at least have the decency to let my daughter go. She has nothing to do with this."

But by the way Kara smirked; John knew she wouldn't let the girl go which filled him with anger. It didn't matter who you were, you never involve children in situations like this.

"But your daughter is the main attraction," she said pulling out her cell phone. John heard a high-pitched noise coming from the center of the room only to realize that it was coming from Julie. He could see a blue light emitting from beneath her shirt. He had a sickening feeling that he knew what it was. Donnelly was coming to the same conclusion. Both men glared at Kara as she turned to leave.

"Normally I would just shoot all three of you," she said addressing Donnelly. "But I think that your daughter has enough semtax duct taped to her to destroy this whole building. Clearly enough to kill the both of you along with her. And don't worry you'll have plenty of time to say goodbye to her. Explain the situation. After all, I need enough time to leave the building." She backed out of the room and closed the door, locking it on the outside.

End notes: sorry for the cliffhanger but it was getting a little long.


	6. Chapter 6

Head Note: sorry it's taken so long. I wanted to run smoother, And then life happened. Anyway Here's chapter six. Enjoy!

Chapter Six

_"But your daughter is the main attraction," she said pulling out her cell phone. John heard a high-pitched noise coming from the center of the room only to realize that it was coming from Julie. He could see a blue light emitting from beneath her shirt. He had a sickening feeling that he knew what it was. Donnelly was coming to the same conclusion. Both men glared at Kara as she turned to leave._

_"Normally I would just shoot all three of you," she said addressing Donnelly. "But I think that your daughter has enough semtax duct taped to her to destroy this whole building. Clearly enough to kill the both of you along with her. And don't worry you'll have plenty of time to say goodbye to her. Explain the situation. After all, I need enough time to leave the building." She backed out of the room and closed the door, locking it on the outside._

John crouched down to Julie's eye level. She clearly understood something was wrong, even if she didn't understand that it involved her.

"I need you to take off her shirt, Nicholas," he said simply.

"What?!" he shouted, understandably angry at what John was suggesting.

"If I am going to get that bomb off her," he began. "I need to be able to see it." John almost wasn't expecting him to comply. But Donnelly swallowed his anger and helped Julie take off her shirt. Under the shirt was the bomb vest, and under that was a small tank top that served as the only barrier between the bomb and Julie's chest. According to the count down, they had four minutes to get it off or disable it.

"I need you to talk to her," he said. "Keep her attention off that vest."

Immediately Donnelly began whispering words of comfort and encouragement to his daughter. John got to work figuring out how to disable the bomb. It was too tight around her chest to cut it off. And the wires were hidden from his view so that he couldn't disable it the old-fashioned way.

"I can't get at the wires," he told Donnelly.

"What does that mean?" Donnelly asked the worry evident in his voice.

"It means I'm going to need some help," he said tapping his ear piece. "Finch, you there?"

"Of course, Mr. Reese." Finch replied. "What's your situation?"

"I can't get to the wires on the bomb, Finch, so I'm going to need help getting into the phone your way." He took a picture of the cell phone trigger with his phone. "I am sending you a picture of the phone."

"I got your text," Finch confirmed, "Now let's see if there is a way to hack the phone."

"We don't have a lot if time, Finch," he told him impatiently.

"I think I have a way. Based on the model and IMEI number, I am sending you five possible unlock codes for that phone."

"I don't suppose I have to ask how you got those codes?" John asked.

"Later will do, Mr. Reese," Finch said. "After all, as you said, we are short of time."

John quickly realized that they had another problem.

"Finch, we only have three chances to make this work." He said. "There are five codes, and we only have three chances to guess the right one."

Finch was silent for a moment before saying that John should at least try. Donnelly was watching John nervously. He knew that his daughter's life depended more or less on luck, and he was not comfortable with the idea.

"Keep talking to her," John told him.

John tried one code without success. The tension in the room increased tenfold. They only had two more chances and if John failed to save Julie he would never forgive himself. _Not that I'd have much time to_, he thought to himself. He took a deep breath and tried again. Just as before, it didn't do anything.

One chance left and they had less than a minute to disable the bomb.

"Let me try," Donnelly said in desperation. But John refused.

"You don't know what codes I have already tried," he explained. "And we only have one shot left."

"I heard what she said," Donnelly said. "The reason she even targeted me was because of you. It may very well be your fault this is even happening."

"And if I hadn't come to help you, Nick, you'd already be dead," John replied bluntly. "Now are we going to continue to argue or are you going to let me try to save your daughter?"

After sighing resignedly, and biting his lip, Donnelly nodded.

John took a deep breath and started putting in one last code. His finger hovered over the last digit. He closed his eyes, took one last deep breath, and tapped the number.

That was the magic code. Sighing in relief, John tapped the cancel button, just before the countdown hit zero. Donnelly was so relieved that he embraced his daughter, kissing her forehead. John backed away a bit, giving them space.

Watching Donnelly with his daughter once again arose in John the desire he often had for a normal life. The desires he had for a wife and a couple of children. The life that had been cut short when he had made the decision to join the CIA. If he had never made that decision he and Jessica might have married and had a couple of children. Just like Donnelly had married the person he loved and had children with her. And for a moment he was envious of Donnelly as he watched him comfort his daughter. Donnelly didn't know how lucky he was.

Finally, Donnelly stood up and faced John.

"So how are we going to get out of here?" he asked.

"Let's work it out together, Nick," John said going to examine the door.

"Can't you just kick down the door or something?" Donnelly asked. John gave a small laugh before answering him.

"That depends on the thickness of the lock and how it's built," John explained. "I might have an idea. If we can take a little of the semtax on the vest, we could try blowing the lock."

"Would that work?" Donnelly asked.

"We only need a little to blow up the lock," john said. "And even if it doesn't destroy the lock entirely, it will loosen it so that all it will take to knock down the door is a well placed kick."

"Is it safe?" Donnelly asked. John looked at him.

"It's our only shot." He answered.

Donnelly seemed a little reluctant, but bit his lip and asked what he could do to help.

"Try to see if you can take off some of the semtax," John replied. "I will try to build a detonator."

It worked like magic. As soon as John explained his plan, he and Donnelly both got to work on their part of the plan. Donnelly knelt down to his daughter again and tried to get the bomb off her. John was busy trying to find anything that could be used to trigger a small amount of semtax. He found a small, round but heavy object in a far corner. Maybe once they had a small amount of semtax in the lock, he could somehow throw it from across the room, initiating an explosion. Donnelly meanwhile, had managed to get the bomb off his daughter and was trying to take it apart. He gave a small humorless laugh that got John's attention.

"Something funny?" He asked.

"Well, no offense," he started. "But don't you think it's a little odd for us to be working together?"

"Well, it's not like we have much of a choice," John replied, not the least bit offended. He himself found it interesting that Donnelly trusted him enough to help him carry out this crazy escape plan.

"One thing I don't get though," Donnelly continued. "Why didn't you just kill that woman when you had the chance? Wouldn't that have been easier?"

"Well, first of all her name is Kara Stanton," he began. "Second of all I figured that one of the reasons you started coming after me was because you wanted to expose the agency's illegal operations," John explained getting Donnelly's attention. "She is everything you thought I was times ten. I'd also be willing to bet that she's working for someone."

Donnelly paused for a moment. "Like a private intelligence network." he ventured.

"It is very possible," John answered. "So, I figured, if you had her as an example of what the CIA can turn people into, plus all the information that I am willing to give you concerning some of the things they forced us to do, it would be more than enough to shut them down."

Donnelly looked at him in shock.

"You'd be willing to do that?" he said. John nodded. "Why?"

"They betrayed me. They were not loyal to me, so I have no loyalty for them." He paused for a moment. "Plus you're a good guy trying to bring down some bad guys, which is something we have in common." He said. "Plus you won't have to chase me anymore," he added jokingly.

"I don't think so," Donnelly said snorting. "After this is over, I will still arrest you."

"First things first," John reminded him, "We have to get out off here." He had managed to build some sort of catapult that he could use to throw the weight at the door. Donnelly had managed to break off a little piece of semtax and handed it to John. John took a look at it, and broke it into a smaller piece, just to be safe. Too little was better than too much.

He then took it to the door and attached it to the lock, trying to stuff a little bit of it in between the lock and the door. John spotted a table and carried it over to the far corner and turned it on its side. Donnelly brought his daughter over and was pulling her shirt over her head, as John crouched behind the table. John picked up the catapult he had made and the ammunition he found and put it on top of the side of the table giving him the stability to aim.

He pulled back the string and helped Donnelly shield his daughter. He took a deep breath and released the catapult. He didn't have to watch his target to know he hit it. The small blast that came from the door told him he had hit his mark. After the rumbling stopped he looked over the table and saw the door barely hanging on the door frame. The weakened lock was now no match for John's foot as it came crashing down, breaking free from the hinges.

"Finch, we're out," he said tapping his ear piece. "I'll get Donnelly to safety, then I'll meet you at Headquarters."

"Glad to hear it," Finch said. "I'll be in touch."

Notes: the way they get out of the room, I don't know if that would work in real life so don't try it at home. I got the idea from Jules Verne's Mysterious Island when they take an explosive substance and throw something at it which causes a spark, and initiates an explosion.


	7. Chapter 7

Head note: This chapter is especially dedicated to the Donnelly fans out there, however few they may be. Enjoy!

Chapter seven

Donnelly carried Julie as he followed the Man in the Suit. She was falling asleep in his arms. She was clearly very tired after a long day. He listened as he talked to his friend. Then the John turned to face him.

"Do you have a way to get home?" he asked Donnelly.

"Yeah, my car is right outside."

"Okay, I'll get you to your car," he said. "Oh and Nick, after we go our separate ways, try not to get yourself killed." Donnelly gave a shadow of a smile before nodding in agreement.

They walked out of the building and onto the sidewalk. Suddenly, John went on high alert, which worried Donnelly.

"What is it?" he asked. He hadn't known John long, but he know that if he was worried, something was wrong.

John didn't answer. Then he seemed to notice something in the distance.

"Get down!" he suddenly shouted and shoved Donnelly to the ground behind Donnelly's car. John pulled out his gun, as did Donnelly. Julie was no longer asleep, but very much aware of what was going on as gunfire erupted in the dark street. One of the shots punctured the wheels on his car, leaving them no way to escape.

"Daddy!" Julie cried.

"It's going to be okay, Julie," he said not entirely sure if he was being honest.

He took a look at who was firing at them. It was Stanton and Snow. They had stayed around in case the bomb didn't go off. Just to make sure that he and John wouldn't make it out of here alive. Donnelly swallowed his fear and told his daughter to stay still as he fired a couple shots toward the rogue CIA agents.

"Finch, we're going to be a little held up. They just took out Donnelly's car," John suddenly said probably talking to his friend. John held his head erect even as he fired a few shots of his own.

Donnelly watched out of the corner of his eye as John listened to what his friend was saying. He wasn't sure what he was saying, but considering the cicumstances, he was more than willing to trust a complete stranger.

"Take Julie," John finally said cocking his gun. "My friend will meet you on 43rd street a few blocks that way. Go! I'll cover you."

Donnelly looked at him. He was totally willing to risk his live to save him and his daughter. And while Donnelly was grateful for all that John had done to save his daughter, He knew that John could protect her much better than he could.

"No," Donnelly said. "You take her. I'll cover for you" he said, firing a few shots over the top of the car.

"Nick, we don't have time," John said. "Julie needs you in her life."

"First and foremost, she needs to live. And you can protect her better than I can," Donnelly shouted over the gunfire. As much as he hated to admit it, it was true. John had the training necessary to do so. "Now take her and go."

John seemed reluctant to leave his side, leaving Donnelly to fend for himself. But he nodded and approached Julie.

"Julie, you need to come with me," he said gently. But Julie shook her head.

"But Daddy said never to go anywhere with strangers," she said.

"Julie," Donnelly said leaning down toward her. "Go with John. You can trust him."

John looked at him in surprise. This was the first time Donnelly had called him by his name. And his declaration of trust surprised himself just as much as it surprised John. However, he had trusted him three times before this and John had never once let him down. He could trust him with Julie. He continued, "He will protect you."

Julie nodded and stood up to leave with John.

"Nick," he said suddenly. "I'll hand her over to my friend and then come back for you."

Donnelly nodded and stood up firing over the top of the car while John scooped up Julie and ran, protecting her head with his body. Donnelly kept firing until John was out of sight.

XxXxXx

John took Julie and ran as Donnelly provided the cover for him. He ran toward the Corner of 43rd street to meet with Finch. He got there, but Finch wasn't there yet. Cursing Finch for the delay, he waited impatiently. It wasn't supposed to be like this. John was supposed to be the one staying behind, not Donnelly. He had signed up for this. He remembered what happened to Riley Cavanaugh when he had volunteered to stay behind and he desperately hoped that the same thing wouldn't happen to Donnelly. He would never forgive himself if Julie never saw her father again.

Cursing again, he checked his watch and looked again for the black Porsche that Finch drove as the getaway car. Finally after what felt like an eternity, Finch turned the corner. He knelt down to Julie's eye level.

"This is my friend, Harold," he explained to her. "He will take care of you until morning. I am going back to help your dad."

Julie seemed nervous to be leaving with yet another man who was not her father, but nodded. John opened the back door and placed her in the back seat.

"Get her out of here," he told Finch as he closed the door.

Finch drove off, and John broke into a full sprint back to where he had left Donnelly, _praying_ that he would get back in time.

XxXxXx

Donnelly took a few more shots at Snow and Stanton. They both ducked and returned fire. These weren't exactly ideal circumstances, but considering that he was up against two trained killers from the CIA, he was doing pretty good. And honestly, he hadn't expected to last this long. _But don't get cocky_, he told himself. _Because that is usually when people get shot_. He heard someone fire a few shots and immediately stood up to shoot at them. Finally one of his shots managed to find its mark in Snow's chest. Snow gave a staggering cry and fell back, never to move again.

Donnelly didn't have time to revel in his victory before a bullet tore through the muscles in his mid-thigh. He cried out as he fell, dropping his gun to clamp his hand over the wound. He winced at the pain coursing through his right leg and began breathing shallowly. Just enough to get oxygen to his lungs because anymore than that sent waves of agony through his entire body. He bared his teeth as he pressed his hand tighter against his wound and heard heels walking closer. Realizing his mistake, he reached for his gun, but it was too late as a heeled shoe kicked the gun away, coming to rest several feet away from him. Hopelessly out of reach. He turned back to look at his attacker and saw Stanton, her gun trained directly over his heart. She smirked as he realized that his chances of getting out of this were slim.

He froze on the ground in fear watching her every move. She started to speak.

"Looks like John's abandoned you, Donnelly. Just like he abandoned me in Ordos. Left me to die." Donnelly didn't know what Ordos was or what it had to do with any of this. But he suspected that whatever happened was the reason she was so determined to do whatever it was she had planned. "And now here you are. In the same kind of helpless situation I was in and he has abandoned you and left you to die by my hand."

"I asked him to," he said through his pain.

"Oh right, because you trust a killer to take care of your daughter," she shot back sarcastically.

Donnelly's heart froze for a second as he thought about it.

"Or did you think that he had somehow changed? That he's a _nice_ killer? A _tame_ killer?"

Donnelly didn't know how to answer. He thought back on John, the Man in the Suit. Just yesterday he would have kicked himself for trusting him with someone as important as his daughter. Even now he was growing more unsure if he should have. What if this whole thing had been a ruse? Just so that he would trust him?

But John had saved his life several times already. Why do that if he just wanted him out of the way? Why pull this elaborate scheme if he could just get rid of him altogether?

Seeing that Donnelly was trying to put things together in his mind, Stanton's smirk grew wider.

"I will make you a deal Donnelly," she began. "You held out on your own for quite a while. I'm surprised you lasted as long as you did. I work for an organization that could use your skills. This job cannot be done with less than two people so I am giving you a choice. You can help me and eventually make John suffer or I will kill you, right now, and find someone else to help me."

Donnelly didn't have to think about it. No matter what John had done he wouldn't work with this woman. He would rather die than work with the woman who had kidnapped his daughter. And he thought cynically, that he probably would. He took a deep breath before answering her. Except he didn't recognize his own voice as it came out dripping with malice.

"You kidnapped my daughter, you strapped a bomb to her chest, you put her through things that a child should never go through, and you expect me to put all that aside and work for you?" He shook his head and then continued. "I would never work for you or your private intelligence firm, even if you hadn't crossed that line. And as for John, I only wish he had done more than just leave you to die."

Donnelly heard the gun cock and knew the end was coming. She was going to kill him, here and now and there was nothing he could do to prevent it. He could only continue to watch her, waiting for her to pull the trigger. She smirked as she observed his reaction.

"Shame." She simply said as her finger began to tighten around the trigger.

However it didn't finish pulling the trigger before a hand clamped down on her wrist and forced the gun away, spoiling her aim. Donnelly watched as John knocked the gun out of her hand and tried to force her against the side of the building. However, she easily got out of his attack and attempted to throw him against the wall as well. Whatever Donnelly thought about Snow's and John's fight paled in comparison to this fight.

Despite John's larger stature, Stanton's combat skills were no less impressive against the tall man. If Stanton won, or even put John out of commission for a moment, that moment would be enough time to kill him. Donnelly couldn't just sit there, he had to help John. He looked around and spotted his gun lying where Stanton had kicked it. It was only a few feet away. He could slide himself over and pick up the gun, but he had to do it now, when Stanton was distracted. He could only hope John kept her distracted long enough for him to reach his gun.

With that, he gritted his teeth and began dragging himself toward the gun. Every move he made sent pain lancing through his leg, the bleeding hole in his thigh threatening to widen at the forced movements. He bit his lip, holding back the yelp building in his throat as he slid himself over to his gun. sweat from the agony began forming on his brow as he pinched his eyes closed, trying to ignore the lightening-sharp pain and moved closer toward the fallen gun. Finally he reached his gun. With a cry of triumph, he picked it up a pointed it at Stanton, but quickly realized another problem. Because John and Stanton were equally skilled, they were moving too much. He was just as likely to hit John as his intended target. He had to wait until he had a clear shot. He felt incredibly helpless as he sat there, waiting for the perfect shot, but he knew he had no other option.

Finally, Stanton managed to force John against the side of the building. Without a word, he raised his weapon and fired, killing the ex-CIA agent that had kidnapped his daughter.

At first John didn't know what happened. He heard a bang and for a second, had thought that Kara had gotten hold of her weapon and shot him. But he quickly realized that was untrue as she crumpled to the ground in front of him and lay still. He looked around and noticed Donnelly lying on the ground, a bullet-hole in his leg, but otherwise alright, holding his gun. Somehow he had managed to get a hold of his weapon. He seemed to be in intense pain and John walked over to him and knelt over him.

He took his jacket off and tore a portion of his sleeve and used it to bind up the gunshot wound. Donnelly hissed in pain as he tied the strips of cloth tightly against his wound. When the wound was bound sufficiently tight, John took Donnelly's arm and helped him get to his feet. Donnelly staggered, and almost fell back down, but John gripped his arm tightly and allowed him to put his weight on him.

"Let's get you out of here, Nick," he said. Suddenly, a car screeched to a stop in the middle of the street. A familiar voice came out of the window.

"Need a lift?" Carter asked. John smiled and moved Donnelly toward the car.

He put Donnelly in the back seat. "Why are you here?" he asked.

"Your friend gave me a call, said you might need some help." she answered. "Wasn't planning on blowing my cover tonight, but then again these thing are never planned out."

"Thanks Carter." John said before getting into the front seat.

End note: so what did you think? This story is not over yet. I have one more chapter I'm going to write and then I will be finished.


	8. Chapter 8

Head note: Okay here is my final chapter. I'm sorry it took so long. Enjoy!

Chapter Eight

The next time Donnelly woke up he was in an apartment building. Carter was nowhere to be seen. He assumed that she had gone home. The apartment was open and spacious and he saw a pool table and a very nice kitchen. Donnelly doubted this was where John lived. John was not dumb enough to take him to his own apartment.

"Where are we?" Donnelly asked him.

"Safe house," John answered. "I needed somewhere to fix your leg and you needed a place to recover before going home."

If the pain in his leg was any indication, John had already cleaned the gunshot wound. It still hurt like the dickens, but at least there was no infection. And at least he wasn't dead. He shuddered at the memory of how close Stanton had come to killing him. If John had showed up just a moment later, she would have succeeded. The same thing had happened with Snow. He'd had the gun pointed at him and was only seconds away from pulling the trigger when John had stopped him. It seemed John had a habit of turning up at the last possible second.

"Why didn't you just take me to a hospital?" Donnelly asked.

"I figured it probably wouldn't be in your best interest for us to be seen together," John said. "You are supposed to be chasing me after all."

"And my daughter?" Donnelly asked. He knew that John had taken her to his friend, but he was not going to take it easy until he saw her safe at home.

"I told you at least ten times last night," John said a little hastily. "She will be fine. Kara Stanton is dead, thanks to you, and my friend will not let anything happen to her. You will see her."

"I want to go home now," Donnelly said. "I have to see my family and Julie."

"Nick-," John started to say, but Donnelly interrupted him.

"If all that needs to happen is recovery, then I can recover at home," Donnelly said. "Take me to my family."

John sighed and reluctantly agreed. He help Donnelly to stand and they left the apartment going down to the street. It was early morning and the sun was starting to rise. John approached a car and told Donnelly to stay put. Donnelly watched as John got into the driver's seat and reached under the Steering wheel. He was slightly startled by the sound of the engine starting up and realized that John had hotwired it.

"What are you doing?!" Donnelly demanded.

"Do you want to go home or not?" John asked turning to look at him. Donnelly had the distinct impression that John enjoyed seeing the look on his face. He had every intention of staying where he was and not getting in the car. But he realized that there was no other way for him to get home. He'd never be able to walk home on a regular day let alone with a bullet hole in his leg. Reluctantly, he got into the passenger seat.

It was about an hour later when the buildings in the city started to look familiar. His mouth tightened into a very small smile as he thought about the prospect of finally seeing his family. He had barely come home during his search for...John. Both he and Sarah had known that a career in the FBI would take a toll on how much time he spent at home. And yet, she had encouraged him to do it and he loved her for it.

They turned the corner on his street and John pulled over. He started limping toward the front door but before he could get there, his son Bradley, who looked like a younger version of his father, ran out the door. He settled on the ground in front of him and hugged him tightly. Sarah came out the front door and knelt to the ground embracing him. Tears of joy streamed from his eyes as he saw Julie getting out of a black, slick car and start running toward him. He and Sarah held her tightly kissed her cheeks, and Donnelly realized that for the first time in months he was truly and genuinely smiling. He stood and turned to his wife.

"Oh Nicholas," she whispered. "What happened? You were shot."

"It doesn't matter," he said tenderly. "We're home. And it's all over."

She had been through a lot in the last 24 hours. For all he knew, she could have been there when Julie had been kidnapped. And then having to spend a whole day not seeing her daughter; having no way to know what was happening to her. But John had saved her. He didn't know how he did it. But he had saved her. He smiled gratefully at the thought and hugged his wife once more taking in her gentle strength that came from being a mother of two.

His children wanted to go inside and both he and Sarah laughed gently at their insistence. He released Sarah and was about to follow Julie and Bradley inside, when he spotted John a few yards away, smiling contentedly. After a moment, Donnelly told his wife he would meet them inside. He limped over to talk to John.

XxXxXx

John watched a few yards away as Donnelly greeted his family with tears and smiles, hugs and kisses. He had enjoyed dropping Donnelly off and watched from afar as he reunited with his family. His trademark smirk grew into a full smile when he had seen Finch drive up and let Julie out. Finch approached him.

"We should go Mr. Reese," he said urgently.

"I'll meet you back at the library, Finch" he replied.

"Mr. Reese, I'm not sure that it's wise for either of us to remain here much longer," he said. "Agent Donnelly will still be hunting the Man in the Suit."

"Finch," he began with finality in his tone. "I will meet you back at the library." Realizing that it wouldn't do any good to try to convince him, Finch limped back to the car and drove away.

It was then that Donnelly looked over and noticed him. John wasn't sure what to expect as Donnelly excused himself to go talk to him. He decided to begin with a little small talk.

"You have a nice family," John began. "Courtesy of the CIA, I never had one." Donnelly gave him a tight-lipped smile.

"Look," Donnelly began. "I know you saved my life and that of my daughter's, but I can't do much to thank you. I still have to do my job."

"So you are going to take me back to Riker's? Now that you have your Man in the Suit?" he asked. It was a moment before Donnelly took a deep breath and answered his question. He seemed to be battling with his conscience about what he was about to say.

"Well, like I said," he began, "I can't do much but I can keep my promise to you."

John was a little confused. "What do you mean?"

"Well, I promised I wouldn't chase you for 48 hours. And according to my watch, you've got 20 hours."

"Really," John said a hint of amusement in his voice. "You're giving me 20 hours to fall off the grid? That's generous of you, Nicholas."

"Well, something tells me you're not going to leave New York." He answered. "There's just something I don't get. You knew something was about to happen. You were so certain that you were willing to risk life of imprisonment just to warn me. How did you know?"

John displayed his trademark smirk.

"You're not the only one who has asked that question," he said simply.

"Something tells me you're not going to answer that question," Donnelly sighed, slightly annoyed.

"See?" John said. "We are getting to know each other." Then he grew serious. "I have no doubt you will continue looking. And I can't stop you from asking questions, or wanting answers, or hunting the Man in the Suit, but even if you catch me again, I can never give you the answers you want."

"Well, it won't stop me from trying," Donnelly said.

"One more thing," John said as Donnelly began walking back toward his family. "Carter."

"What about her?" Donnelly asked although John could tell that he had some idea of what he would say.

"I know you followed her last night. And I know you feel betrayed by her. Trust me; I know what that's like." He began. "But you and I both know what she could add to the FBI. So I don't want her to be hindered in joining because of me." Donnelly tightened his mouth into a thin smile.

"So you want me to ignore everything she's done?" he finished.

"She helped me save you life," John said. "So I think you owe her something."

After a moment, Donnelly nodded. "Anything else?" he asked clearly annoyed at what he was being asked to do.

"Yeah, take care of your family," John said, before shooting him one more smirk and walking away. After a few minutes he looked back and watched as Donnelly walked inside his home.

XxXxXx

John walked in the library as Finch took down the pictures of Donnelly's family. It was a very beautiful family.

"What did he say?" Finch asked him without turning toward him.

"You heard him," John replied, certain that Finch had been listening in.

"He never said he would stop chasing you, Mr. Reese," Finch said turning to look at him.

"I imagine he won't. But he's giving us time to fall off the grid. That's a big step for him."

"20 hours is hardly something to celebrate, Mr. Reese," He said. "It's not like you two are pals now." John looked at Donnelly's picture.

"No," he admitted. "But it's a start."

The End

End notes: thank you to everyone who read it and everyone who took time to review. I had fun writing this story and I hope it kept you entertained.


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